Hope for the Childhood Dream

God has called me to
care for others, specifically through a career in nursing. The call of loving
people and taking care of the sick came early. In elementary school, I
drew a picture explaining why I should be the President of the United States. I
wrote these sentences on it. “Sarah is caring. I love kids because
they are cute.” (Not even making this up.) “I love animals. I love
people. I will take care of … I will take care of the sick."

After I graduated high
school, I knew I wanted to become a nurse. I began chipping away at
nursing school prerequisites. At the age of 20, I began the process of
applying to nursing schools.

5. The number of classes I painstakingly repeated
in order to improve my undergraduate and pre-graduate school GPAs.

15. The number of my failed attempts at gaining
acceptance into nursing school before I got one letter of
admission.

70+. The ballpark figure of how many nursing job
applications I submitted before attending 9 interviews, and having one
offer.

I have faced failure on
numerous occasions. It has beaten me up from time to time. Hot,
salty tears have stained my cheeks, and I have screamedout to
God in frustration. I have been humbled again and again. And yet, God has
been faithful in and through my failures.

When I grew weary of
applying to nursing schools and facing rejection over and over, I found another
undergraduate program to pursue, community health education. It was
during one of my courses, Health & Health Systems, that we learned about
varying health care providers. Nurse practitioners were discussed, and I
knew in my gut, after hearing about that particular profession, I had to try
again. I applied to three schools. Waitlisted. I began to question. Why in the WORLD would God
ask me to pursue something without success?

Was God asking me to
rejoice in my sufferings?

Absolutely! Scriptural
truths apply to all situations. In Romans 5:3-5, it says, “We rejoice in
our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance
produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to
shame, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy
Spirit who has been given to us.”

So was God producing
endurance? Was there evidence in my life of character being created?

In March of 2010, I
applied one last time to six nursing programs. It was my last hurrah and
attempt to attend, as my science prerequisites were due to expire (it had been
a five year process at this point). Waitlisted and rejected times five.
One short email, however, said YES.

I began, and nursing
school was spread out over 3 years. It demanded time and sacrifice.
And it was well worth it. God’s purpose in my waiting was revealed.
The classes I took in nursing school closely resembled the classes I took
during my previous undergraduate program. I did not struggle, but I was
allowed to be in an environment where I could flourish.

During my last quarter
of nursing school, I began the arduous process of putting myself out there and
asking someone in the world to hire me. I passed my nursing boards, and
over the course of the next 7 months, I applied, sat through hours of
interviews, and waited. This time, however, a joyful and trusting heart
waited with me. I knew God would not allow me to wait without purpose.

In January of 2014, I
began my first full-time job as a school nurse. God has led me to a
position where there are cute kids, I care for the sick, and I get to love on a
lot of people. If someone had told me at 20 that I would not become a
nurse until age 29, I might have quit, and I would have missed it all.

God knew that my
failures and my sufferings would produce endurance. Endurance that spurs
me on when there are tough work days. Character that cannot be birthed by
easy successes. A steadfast HOPE in the God who sees His good work to
completion.

If you are experiencing
failure and cannot see with clarity, dear one, please, allow this truth to wash
over you. You will endure. Character is being formed. God
will produce hope. And you will feel NO SHAME.

When God places a
calling upon your life, He will see it through. It does not guarantee an
easy path, but you will not walk it alone.

0
comments:

Post a Comment

About Us

Welcome to Anchored Voices, a place for women to use their words and creativity to point each other to the God who anchors the soul. Conceived to foster an online community where we can remind one another that when the waves hit—in Jesus, the soul is safe.